CONWAY, Ark. – (Oct. 29, 2007) Hendrix College is increasing its current capital campaign goal to $100 million, providing the resources necessary to construct a high-tech $20 million Student Life and Technology Center and fully endow the college’s Odyssey program, along with 12 new Odyssey professorships. Expanding the campaign is possible because of surpassed fundraising goals and the enthusiastic support from the college’s alumni and friends, Hendrix President J. Timothy Cloyd said Monday.
Hendrix has nearly met the original $70 million goal set by the college in 2004 – more than 14 months before the campaign was set to conclude at the end of 2008. The College’s Board of Trustees has expanded the campaign by $30 million and lengthened its duration through 2010, Cloyd announced today.
“The generous support and enthusiastic spirit of our alumni and friends will allow Hendrix College to fund a world-class educational program and construct a one-of-a-kind facility that will be a model for future technology centers in Arkansas,” Cloyd said. “When our goal is accomplished, generations of students will have received the opportunity to study throughout the world, along with the technological tools to reach the world.”
Hendrix’s initial campaign successfully increased endowment support for the Odyssey program, scholarships and financial aid, along with raising funds needed to construct the college’s $23 million Wellness and Athletics Center, including a track and athletic playing fields, which opened in August. Cloyd said the campaign will now focus on funding the Odyssey program in perpetuity and constructing one of the most advanced technology centers on a college campus in Arkansas.
ABOUT HENDRIX’S ODYSSEY PROGRAM: Hendrix College’s Odyssey program, established in 2004, requires Hendrix students to complete three hands-on liberal arts Odyssey experiences during their undergraduate career in areas selected from six categories: Artistic creativity, global awareness, professional and leadership development, service to the world, undergraduate research and special projects. The program developed the concept of “engaged learning” at Hendrix, allowing students to experience liberal arts and sciences “hands-on” educational opportunities outside of the classroom.
Many Hendrix students utilize their personal Odyssey journeys to complete projects around the world – from studying economics in China to emerging economies in Africa – while others compete their projects closer to home – from performing at New York City’s Carnegie Hall to developing a summer hands-on science program for public school children in Conway.
The program has been extremely popular with students and faculty, Cloyd said. Since the Odyssey program was implemented, Hendrix College has set new records for applications and for entering students, successes directly attributable to the uniqueness and popularity of the Odyssey program. More than $1 million has already been awarded to fund approximately 1,750 student engaged-learning projects during the past three years, Cloyd said.
Hendrix’s Odyssey program has been featured by Time magazine, on NBC’s Today show, in the New York Times, and in other national media.
“Students throughout the country have heard about the Odyssey program and want to attend a college where this type of rewarding, engaged learning is encouraged,” Cloyd said.
ABOUT THE STUDENT AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER: The new 80,000 square-foot Student Life and Technology Center will be constructed on the former site of Hendrix’s Grove Gymnasium, adjacent to Harkrider Avenue on the east side of the college’s campus. Cloyd said the new facility will be “designed to reflect our students’ keen enthusiasm for engaging in active learning and life experiences outside of class.” Construction is expected to begin next year.
Along with a dining hall, café, game room and post office, the center will include a 5,000 square-foot centralized programming space with state-of-the-art lighting and sound equipment and two 21-foot projection screens. The facility will also include offices for student affairs and academic support services, along with offices for student organizations and student media.
A distinguishing feature of the Student Life and Technology Center will be the Educational Technology Center (ETC), accessible 24 hours a day to students and faculty. The ETC will weave state-of-the-art teaching, learning, and social technology into Hendrix’s campus, enhancing the educational experience with advanced technological features, Cloyd said. The ETC will include:
- Computer workstations with large flat-panel SMART Board interactive whiteboards to facilitate group projects as well as more traditional individual computer desks with widescreen monitors.
- Software for preparing video and digital media presentations.
- A video conference room linking students and faculty with their peers around the world for coursework and Odysseys.
- A practice classroom where students can create audio and video recordings of rehearsal presentations using the most current instructional technology.
- Distributed technology providing strategically located flat-panel SMART Board displays that accept student laptop and hand-held connections for collaboration in designated areas throughout the building.
Hendrix, founded in 1876, is a selective, residential, undergraduate liberal arts college emphasizing experiential learning in a demanding yet supportive environment. The college is among 165 colleges featured in the 2008 edition of the Princeton Review America’s Best Value Colleges. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. For more information, contact Mark Scott at scottm@hendrix.edu or 501-450-1462.